Chapter 260: The Everday Emblem
Chapter 260: The Everday Emblem
Among the Heavenly Kings that Ji Xinghuo had encountered, the one he interacted with the most was the Cold Hill Chief of the Snow Ape Tribe. However, due to their trade relations, Cold Hill always kept his strength in check.
As for this Snake-shaped Crystal English tribe, despite his polite demeanor, he exuded a terrifying sense of oppression.
Ji Xinghuo didn't even dare to scan him with his electromagnetic sensing ability.
"Stronger than Cold Hill!"
He suppressed the intuition in his heart, but his face still bore the fearless expression of a Red Emperor believer. He looked brave and fearless, but a hint of anxiety lurked in his eyes as he raised his head to meet the other's gaze. "Greetings, Elder."
"Hmm..."
The Snake-shaped Crystal English being appraised Ji Xinghuo, his pitch-black pupils moving slightly as he let out a soft laugh that seemed to hold a deeper meaning.
However, Ji Xinghuo couldn't be sure if he was actually laughing.
"Highlander, which tribe do you hail from?" the Snake-shaped Crystal English being asked.
"The Blood Rage Tribe," Ji Xinghuo replied.
"Is that so?" The other party neither confirmed nor denied, "Eighty seasons ago, I visited Blood Rage Fortress, but as I recall, the tattoos of the Blood Rage Tribe are not like that. Although your tattoos are similar, there are some details that are incorrect."
This statement startled Ji Xinghuo, and he couldn't help but show his surprise on his face.
"Hehe, you don't have to be afraid."
The Snake-shaped Crystal English being offered a word of comfort with a smile, "The City of Everday welcomes people from all tribes. We don't care how you choose to disguise yourself, but your strength has triggered our alert standards, so you must truthfully report your origins."
His gaze seemed to see through all pretenses and discern the truth.
Ji Xinghuo's heart sank as he realized there was no point in trying to deceive this being. He replied respectfully, "Yes."
Then, he removed the arm guards he had been wearing, and his body shrunk slightly as he returned to his original form. However, the blood marks and tattoos on his body would require a special potion to wash off, and his hair would take some time to grow back, making it obvious that he was not a highlander.
"Are you from Earth?" the Snake-shaped Crystal English being asked.
This time, Ji Xinghuo was truly shocked. Not only had the other party recognized his race, but what surprised him the most was that the question was asked in Inter-Asian Common language!
Earth's stargate was located in the Thousand Peak Forest, and Olympia was over 20,000 kilometers away from the City of Everday. Very few Earthlings made it to the City of Everday, and there was nothing remarkable about their appearance. In the Bloody Highlands, you might not even find one person out of a thousand who had heard of Earth.
Yet, this being had not only recognized him at a glance but also mastered the Inter-Asian Common language.
Ji Xinghuo was astonished beyond words.
"Elder, your knowledge is truly profound!" He sincerely admired the alien before him and answered honestly, "I am a citizen of the Asia-Pacific Community."
"I'm just interested in the civilizations of the surrounding star regions, and I have a lot of time on my hands, so I decided to learn your language," the Snake-shaped Crystal English being said casually, but Ji Xinghuo could tell that he was quite pleased by the compliment.
"May I have the honor of knowing your name, Elder?" Ji Xinghuo asked.
"42."
Ji Xinghuo was taken aback, "What?"
"42 is my real name." The Snake-shaped Crystal being did not elaborate further, "You can also call me by another name I gave myself, which translates to 'Luminous Candle' in your Inter-Asian Common language."
"Ji Xinghuo greets Elder Huyu," Ji Xinghuo introduced himself, taking the initiative to give his full name. He sensed that this Heavenly King possessed mental abilities, so he dared not lie.
"Hmm." Huyu nodded slightly and continued, "It's rare for an Earthling to come to the City of Everday. What brings you here?"
Ji Xinghuo answered truthfully, "Elder, I came to the Bloody Highlands for adventure. A few days ago, I arrived near the City of Everday. I've admired this city for a long time and have always heard of this paradise-like city, so I wanted to take a look inside."
"For a Super-Being like you to make your way from the Thousand Peak Forest to the City of Everday, you are quite bold." Huyu's eyes flickered as if scanning Ji Xinghuo's body, and his face showed surprise, "No wonder... I haven't seen a young man with such outstanding talent in many years."
Ji Xinghuo humbly replied, "Elder, you flatter me."
"Hehe..." Huyu smiled meaningfully, stroking his chin with one arm, "Since you don't want to reveal your true identity, I will allow you to continue your disguise in the City of Everday."
"Thank you, Elder!" Ji Xinghuo expressed his gratitude, knowing that posing as a highlander in the Bloody Highlands would save him a lot of trouble.
Huyu's hand glowed with light.
In an instant, a crystal emblem took shape in his hand. As light flickered, information seemed to be imprinted into the emblem.
"What's your highlander name?" Huyu asked.
"Kuiye."
Huyu finished creating the crystal emblem and tossed it to Ji Xinghuo, saying, "This is your pass to the City of Everday. Don't lose it."
Ji Xinghuo caught the emblem, feeling its residual warmth. The hexagonal emblem was only half a palm-size and about five millimeters thick, with engravings on both sides. One side bore the mark of the City of Everday—a planet encircled by seven satellites—while the other side featured a relief of Light Shining Peak.
"Go now."
"With this Everday Emblem, you are an official resident."
"You can stay in the City of Everday for a while, and if you like the city, you are welcome to stay longer or even settle down here permanently."
Huyu waved his hand, signaling that Ji Xinghuo could leave.
"Yes, Elder."
Ji Xinghuo put on his arm guards again, reverting to his highlander appearance. He hung the emblem on his chest armor and exited the hall.
Outside, the Crystal English guard was still waiting. Upon seeing the emblem on Ji Xinghuo's chest, the guard paused noticeably.
Ji Xinghuo realized from his tone that his Everday Emblem was somewhat special and not something that anyone could obtain easily. Thus, he introduced himself, "I am Kuiye, from the Blood Rage Tribe. May I ask for your name, sir?"
The guard glanced at him, hesitated for a moment, but still replied, "Ming Yu."
Before Ji Xinghuo could say anything else, Ming Yu continued, "There's no need to try to get close to me. In the City of Everday, as long as you don't violate the law, the Crystal English tribe will not interfere in the residents' affairs. Farewell."
With that, he jumped onto the hovering vehicle and left.
Ji Xinghuo watched Ming Yu's departing figure, feeling a sense of helplessness.
He gently touched the Everday Emblem on his chest, and a light projection appeared in front of him. He could manipulate it to zoom in, zoom out, or flip through the pages. The emblem contained the laws of the City of Everday written in over a dozen languages, totaling several hundred pages, which was actually considered concise for a legal document.
Ji Xinghuo browsed through it briefly and noticed a few key points.
First, private entry into Light Shining Peak and the restricted areas within the city was prohibited. Second, it was forbidden to damage the infrastructure of the City of Everday. Third, infringement of others' interests was strictly prohibited. Fourth, any damage caused by battles must be compensated tenfold, and those who refused to comply would be subject to immediate execution by the Crystal English tribe...
There was too much to take in at once, so Ji Xinghuo closed the projection and started wandering the streets casually.
Here, at the foot of Light Shining Peak, one could look up and behold the peak, where crystalline spires rose from the mountain, each one towering higher than the last, like a forest of spires. From the highest palace, a massive column of light shot straight into the sky, piercing through the bubble-like protective shield and disappearing into the dark heights.
The first law of the City of Everday was to prohibit private entry into Light Shining Peak.
Although Ji Xinghuo was curious, he dared not break this rule.
He walked along the clean and tidy streets, having already noticed on his way here that the population of the City of Everday was quite large, ranging from two to three million.
However, the vast majority were outsiders.
The Crystal English tribe, as the masters of the city, were actually the minority, and it took a while to find a few of them with electromagnetic sensing.
"That's too few," Ji Xinghuo thought, but he also felt that it made sense. Every Crystal English tribe member he had seen was a legendary powerhouse, and there might only be a total of two thousand of them in the entire City of Everday.
That was two thousand legendary powerhouses!
"Terrifying!"
"That's the unique trait of the Crystal English tribe. They have a small population but ridiculously strong average strength."
Ji Xinghuo couldn't imagine what would happen if a race had tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of legends. They wouldn't just be confined to a single city; they would have conquered the Bloody Highlands and perhaps even threatened the True Dragon Empire's rule. This star domain would have had to change its name.
Moreover, the Crystal English tribe's aether technology was so advanced.
It was unbelievable that they had entered the Star Realm over seventy thousand years ago and were still limited to the Bloody Highlands, with only one City of Everday. There had to be another reason behind this.
Ji Xinghuo pondered this as he suddenly noticed a large exotic species store on the street ahead. The five-story building was entirely dedicated to exotic species trading, allowing both buying and selling, and many exotic species were entering and exiting the store, making it a bustling place.
With his electromagnetic sensing, he scanned and found that the owner of this store was a Crystal English tribe member.
To be able to open such a large store at the foot of Light Shining Peak, this store must have a strong backing in the City of Everday and was likely an official industry of the Crystal English tribe.
"Let's take a look inside."
Ji Xinghuo was intrigued, as he had a large collection of exotic species on hand, and if the prices were right, he might be able to sell some of them.
Upon entering the store, he saw several light projections floating in the spacious hall, displaying the buying and selling prices of exotic species in different languages.
The City of Everday used three types of currency.
They were aether crystals, True Dragon coins, and "jingyuan" issued by the Crystal English tribe.
The three currencies could be exchanged, and Ji Xinghuo checked the current exchange rate. One aether crystal was equal to forty thousand True Dragon coins, or about 1.8 million Asia-Pacific Community dollars. At the same time, one aether crystal could be exchanged for 500,000 jingyuan in the City of Everday.
Ji Xinghuo carefully browsed through the buying prices of exotic species and soon discovered a pattern. Many exotic species here had higher prices than on Earth.
For example, the basaltic body, earth pulse, ground thorn, shockwave, burrowing, fossil to sand, and other exotic species related to the earth element were all priced higher.
If the exotic species were related to "light," the prices were astronomical, tens or even hundreds of times more expensive than ordinary exotic species!
"I see," Ji Xinghuo guessed the reason.
Previously, when he had observed the Crystal English tribe, he noticed that their profession templates were not as diverse as those of Earthlings. Most of them were "Earth Walkers," "Halo Warriors," "Gravity Masters," or "Mechanics."
This was obviously related to the racial talents of the Crystal English tribe, and Ji Xinghuo guessed that there must also be "Crystal Light Servants" and "Optical Stringers" among them.
It was even possible that these two profession templates originated from the Crystal English tribe!
"Luckily, I have a lot of exotic species related to the earth element." Ji Xinghuo recalled the more than a thousand stone scythe demons he had hunted in the Absolute Peak Valley, from which he had obtained a large number of exotic species, many of which were abilities of the Earth Walker profession template, and now he could sell them at a high price.
36 years old, no excuses. Last year, I could still run 10 kilometers non-stop in 52 minutes. After staying up all night yesterday, not only did I fail to write two chapters, but I also feel like a wreck today. I won't stay up late anymore; I owe two chapters, and I won't take any days off this month. I'll definitely make it up.
(End of Chapter)
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